Torque rod assembly for spring suspension



Sept. 22, 1953 J. c. WARD 2,653,035

TORQUE ROD ASSEMBLY FOR SPRING SUSPENSION Filed Nov. 9, 1951 3Sheets-Sheet 1 nu@ nMW@ l Lr-v l) IN VENTOR. James C. wa rd BYE/tm ATTORNEYs` Slept; 22, 1953 Filed Nov. 9, 1951 .J. c. WARD 2,653,035

TORQUE ROD ASSEMBLY FOR SPRING SUSPENSION 3 sheets-sheet 2 BYU'am-s Cw'ara' www @Mu-J A T'TORNEYS SePt- 22, 1953 J. c. WARD 2,653,035

TORQUE Ron ASSEMBLY FOR SPRING SUSPENSION IQ i N; 46 N 35 f 6 .NVENTORCJ'a-mea C'. ward EY M A fro R NE Y6'- Patented Sept. 22, 1953 UNITEDSTATES PAT ass NT OFFICE TORQUE ROD ASSEMBLY FOR SPRING SUSPENSIONApplication November 9, 1951, Serial No. 255,699

10 Claims.

This invention relates to spring suspensions particularly of the kindadapted for use on heavy duty trucks and trailers that are commonlyemployed in cross country transportation.

Heavy duty trucks and trailers of this character are usually equippedwith two axles at the rear end thereof, and in instances where suchaxles are independently suspended from the frame of the vehicle, itoften happens that an impact impressed on one axle is of such naturethat it causes the axle to bear the entire load that should normally bedistributed between the two axles. Therefore, it has been proposedheretofore to afford a spring suspension for two such axles that will beof such nature that the stress incident to an impact impressed on oneaxle may be distributed between the axles and such arrangements havecommonly been referred to as tandem spring suspensions, and the presentinvention particularly has to do with improvements in such suspensions.

In tandem spring suspensions of the prior art certain operative partshave been connected to gether in such a way that there was metal tometal contact between certain of the parts, and by reason of water, roadgrime and the like that collects on the parts in the course of use ofthe suspensions, such parts have become frozen together makingseparation thereof quite difcult when repair of the vtandem was to beeffected, and it is therefore an object of the present invention toconnect operative elements of a spring suspension of the aforesaidcharacter in such a way that metal to metal engagement will be avoidedand thereby freezing of the parts and the like will be avoided.

It is essential in a suspensionf'of the aforesaid character that the twoaxles be arranged in par allel relation one with the other and also thatthe longitudinal extent of the axles be normal to the line of travel ofthe vehicle. In order that this may be realized, it is necessary toarrange the axles so that the longitudinal position of each axle may bevaried with respect to the other so that adjustments may be effected tobring the axles into the aforesaid parallel and normal rela tion, andyet another object of this invention is to enable this to be effected inan expeditious and economical manner.

More specific objects of this invention are to interpose a rubberbushing intermediate operative parts of a suspension of the aforesaidchai'- acter so as to thereby prevent metal to metal contact between theparts; to equip such bushings with eccentric portions mountable inmembers to be movable relative thereto whereby movement of the bushingrelative to the member in which it is mounted will cause a variation inthe relationship between the bushing and the member; and to utilize anarrangement of this character to effect the aforesaid adjustment of theaxles to bring the same into aforesaid parallel and normal relation.

It is sometimes necessary that heavy trucks and trailers be transportedfrom one place to another in an unloaded condition and it isadvantageous to arrange spring suspensions of the aforesaid character insuch a way that when a relatively light load is impressed thereon, aswhen the vehicle is unloaded, the spring suspension Will readily yield,and to enable this to be realized is another object of this invention,and objects ancillary to the foregoing are to employ leaf springs in aspring suspension of the aforesaid character that are so arranged thatcertain leaves of the spring embody greater resiliency than that of thespring of the whole; and to so relate such portions of the spring to thevehicle as to enable these portions to carry the load impressed on thevehicle especially during the unloaded condition thereof.

In spring suspensions of the aforesaid character, it is common toprovide an equalizer between adjacent ends of the springs of thesuspension and such an equalizer is used in the present invention, andfurther objects of this invention are to limit canting movement of suchan equalizer so as to prevent the same from moving into engagement withthe frame of the vehicle on which it is mounted; to afford a stopagainst which the end portions of the springs may move when stressesincident to an impact on one axle are being distributed between theaxles and to so arrang-e the spring and stop as to insure againstimpaling of the spring on the stop.

Yet further objects of this invention are to engage the ends of thesprings in a suspension of the aforesaid character with arcuate surfacesof such nature that when the spring is deflected from the normal convexconfiguration thereof toward a straight line the engagement of thespring with the support therefor will move progressively inwardly of thespring so as to thereby I'decrease the effective lengths of the springand increase the ilexure rate of the spring; and to afford anarrangement of the aforesaid character that is of such nature that theeffective length and the ilexure rate of the spring is adjusted inresponse to the load impressed thereon.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent fromthe following description and claims and are illustrated in theaccompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show a preferredembodiment of the present invention and the principle thereof and what Inow consider to be the best mode in which I have contemplated applyingthat principle. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same orequivalent principle may be used and structural changes may be made asdesired by those skilled in the art without departing from the presentinvention and the purview of 'the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of vapreferred form o f my novelapparatus showing the same mounted on the frame of an automotivevehicle;

Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view in which certain parts are brokenaway and which `is taken substantially on the line 2-2 on Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional View taken substantially on line 3 3 onFig. l;

Figs. fl and 5 are side elevational views in which certain parts arebroken away and which respectively illustrate diierent operativepositions that may be assumed by my apparatus;

Fig. 6 is a detail view drawn to an enlarged scale and takensubstantially on the line 6--6 .on Fig. 1;

Fig. 7 is a sectional detail view taken substantially on the line I-'Ion Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 88 in Fig. '7;

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8 but showing the parts in releasedpositions; and

Fig. 10 is an end elevational view of the bushing employed in thearrangement illustrated in detail in Figs. 6, '7 and 8 and wherein thebolt on which the bushing is mounted is shown in cross section.

AIn the accompanying drawings I have shown my novel apparatus inassociation with the frame of an automotive vehicle which, as shown inFig. 2, -comprises two side members Fl and F2 arranged in spaced apartrelation. My apparatus is adapted to support a front axle FA and a rearaxle RA from the frame in such a way as to yieldingly suspend theseaxles from the frame so that shocks and the like encountered in thecourse of movement of the vehicle over a Vroadway will be dissipated.

My novel apparatus includes substantially similar structures that arerespectively mounted on the side members 0f the frames FI and F2 andhereinafter the one of these structures that is associated with the sideframe Fl is described in detail since the structure mounted on the sidemember F2 is similar to that which is described.

As shown, my apparatus comprises a front hanger bracket I I and a rearhanger bracket I2. As 4best shown in Fig. 3 the rear hanger bracket |2lcomprises an upstanding plate I3 that Vis adapted to rest against theouter face of the side member FI of the frame on which it is to besecured, and this hanger also includes a seat I4 that engages the lowerface of the side frame member. When the plate and seat are located, asaforesaid, the bracket I2 is bolted or otherwise suitably secured to theside member FI of the frame. The iront hanger -bracket is similarlyarranged to enable it to be secured to the side member FI of the frameon which it is to be mounted. While I have shown the front and rearbrackets as including elements respectively engageable with the outerand lower faces of the side member FI of the frame, it will beunderstood that under certain circumstances a side plate on each hangerbracket may be rested against the outer face of a side member of theframe to be suitably secured thereto as by welding. The type of mountingof the front and rear brackets will depend upon the naturel of the frameof the vehicle with which my apparatus is to be associated, and anymanner of mounting which insures tight connection of the brackets to theside member of the frame is suitable.

My apparatus also includes a center bracket I5 which is arranged to besecured to the side member FI of the frame midway between the front andrear brackets I I and I2 in any suitable manner such as that describedhereinabove with reference to the front and rear hanger brackets. Thecenter bracket 5 includes depending spaced apart arms I6 and I'I, Figs.l, 2, 4 and 5. A stub shaft I8 is extended between the arms I6 and I'Iin position to be slightly -spaced below the lower edge of the sidemember FI of the frame and a bearing I9 vof suitable construction isdisposed about the shaft IS to afford a pivotal support for an equalizergenerally indicated by 20. The equalizer 20 comprises side frame members2| and 22, Figs. l, 2, 4 and 5 which are interconnected adjacent totheir front ends by a bearing lplate 23 that extends therebetween, and asimilar bearing plate 2li extends between these side frame membersadjacent the rear ends thereof.

A bolt 25 extends between theside frame member-s 2| and 22 below thebearing plate 23 and the portion of this bolt disposed between the sideframe members is surrounded by a sleeve 26. Another bolt 2'I extendsbetween the side frame members 2| and 22 below the bearing plate 24 andthis bolt is also surrounded by a sleeve as 28. The equalizer 2E! hasadjacent ends of leaf springs 29 and 3G extended thereinto in such a waythat the rear end of the spring 29 is disposed between the bearing plate23 and the sleeve 26 while the front end of the spring 30 is disposedbetween the bearing plate 24 and the sleeve 28. Normally these ends ofthe springs respectively bear against the bearing plates 23 and 24 butin the course of operation of my apparatus these ends of the springs mayrespectively move into engagement with the sleeves 26 and 28 which, insuch circumstances, will be effective to prevent displacement of theseends of the springs from the equalizer 2D.

As best shown in Figs. l and 5 the front hanger bracket II includes adownwardly directed arculate bearing surface 3| against which theforward end of the spring 29 is adapted to bear. The configuration ofthis arcuate surface is such that when my apparatus is at rest theforward end of the spring 29 `bears against the arcuate surface 3|adjacent to the forward end thereof. Moreover, the arcuate configurationis such that as the spring 29 is deflected from the normal positionthereof shown in Fig. l toward the relatively extreme deected positionshown in Fig. 4, the spring will progressively bear against portions ofthe arcuate surface 3| disposed inwardly from the forward end thereof.rhis arrangement enables a gradual shortening of the effective length ofthe spring and also has the effect of gradually increasing the flexurerate of the spring as the force impressed thereon increases and therebyrelatively uniform functioning of the spring is insured.

An arcuate surface 32 corresponding to the arcuate surface 3| isprovided in the rear hanger bracket |2 and is arranged correspondinglyto the arcuate surface 3| except that the end of the spring 39 that isadapted to engage therewith in the normal position engages the arcuatesurface 32 near the rear end thereof and progressively engages forwardlydisposed portions of the arcuate surface 32 in the course of flexure ofthe spring 30 from the normal position thereof shown in Fig. 1 towardthe relatively extreme deflected position thereof shown in Fig. 5. Thusthe arcuate surface 32 functions with respect to the spring 30 in thesame man-ner as that in which the arcuate surface 3| functions withrespect to the spring 29.

' The lower surfaces of the bearing plates 23 and 24 respectively embodyarcuate configurations that are of a configuration like that of thesurfaces 3| and 32 described hereinabove. Thus as the spring 29 isdeflected from the normal position thereof shown in Fig. 1 toward theextreme deflected position thereof shown in Fig. 4, the end of thespring 29 respectively engages progressively inwardly disposed portionsof the arcuate lower surface of the bearing plate 23. Correspondingly,when the spring 30 is deflected from the normal position thereof shownin Fig. 1 toward the extreme deflected position thereof shown in Fig. 5,the end of this spring adapted to cooperate with the lower arcuatesurface of the bearing plate 24 progressively engages rearwardlydisposed portions of this arcuate surface. This progressive engagementof the ends of the springs 29 and 30 respectively with the bearingplates 23 and 24 also has the effect of shortening the effective lengthsof the springs and thereby increasing the flexure rate thereof so as tothereby also contribute to uniform functioning of the springs 29 and 30.

My novel apparatus is particularly adapted for use in association withheavy duty trucks or heavy duty trailers and the above describedadjustments of the effective length of the springs 29 and 30 not onlyinsures uniform functioning of the springs upon deflection thereof whenthe vehicle is traversing a rough surface but also the effective lengthof the springs is automatically adjusted in response to the load to becarried by the vehicle. Thus, in Fig. 1 I illustrated my novel apparatuswith the parts thereof in the positions occupied thereby in the unloadedcondition of the vehicle with which my apparatus is associated. However,as the vehicle is loaded and the weight increases, the springs deflecteddownwardly and the effective length of the springs 29 and 30 is alteredin the manner described hereinabove so that the effective length of thesprings, and therefore the flexure rate thereof, are automaticallyadjusted and correspond to the degree of weight to be supported by thesprings.

Corresponding ends of the axles FA and RA are adapted to be respectivelysupported from the medial portions of theI springs 29 and 39.

Thus referring to Fig. 2 it will be seen that a plate 33 is disposedabove the top leaf of the spring 30. The lower surface of this plate maybe recessed to receive theupper leaf of the spring in such a way thatthe edges of this leaf are embraced by the side edges of the recess soafforded. Spaced apart U-bolts as 34 have the limbs thereof extendedupwardly past medial portions of the sides of the leaves of the spring3|) desirably in contact therewith so as to be effective to preventlateral displacement of the leaves of the spring. An axle seat 35, Figs.1, 2 and 6 is engaged With the lower leaf of the spring 39 and this seatis equipped with ears as 3B, Fig. 6,

through which the limb portions of the U-bolts 34 are extended. The axleseat 35 includes a downwardly faced arcuate surface 31, Fig. 1, that isadapted to embrace the upper portion of the axle RA and by referring toFig. 1 it will be seen that the bight of each U-bolt as 34 embraces theaxle RA so as to force the same into engagement With the arcuate seat3l. The U-bolts as 34 are passed through the plate 33 and nuts as 39 arefitted onto the threaded free ends of the U-bolts and are effective totightly clamp the various elements associated with these bolts in tightrelation one with the other.

A plate 40 and an axle seat 4| and U-bolts as 42 are associated with thespring 29 and the front axle FA in the same manner as that describedhereinabove With respect to the spring and the rear axle RA. It willthus be seen that the axles FA and RA of the vehicle are firmlyconnected to my novel apparatus respectively midway in the extent of thefront and rear springs 29 and 30.

The spring seat includes two forwardly extending arms 43 and 44, Figs. 6and 7. The arms 43 and 44 respectively have openings 45 and 46, Fig. '7,formed therein, and as shown in Fig. 7, the walls of these openings areinclined so that the openings are larger at the outwardly disposed endsthereof than at the inwardly disposed ends thereof whereby to affordseats adapted to be engaged by a bushing as will be explained presently.A torque arm 41, Fig. l, is provided which desirably is tubular in formand which has transversely extending sleeves as 48 and 49 welded orotherwise secured thereto at opposite ends thereof. As best shown inFig. 7, the sleeve 49 is adapted to be disposed between the arms 43 and44 and this sleeve is adjustably connected to these arms. To this end arubber bushing is mounted in the sleeve 49. This bushing is adapted toclosely embrace the stem of a bolt 52 which, as best shown in Fig. 8,has a flattened surface 53 formed thereon, the sleeve 5| including acomplementary portion whereby the sleeve, and

l, consequently the bushing 50, are non-rotatably connected to the bolt52. As best shown in Figs. 7, 9 and 10, the bushing 50 includessubstantially conical end portions 54 and 55 which are eccentric to themedial extent of the bushing that is disposed about the sleeve 5|. Thesleeve 5| and the bushing 5|) are divided medially in the extent thereofand the end portions of the bushing at this division of the bushing aredesirably enlarged, as indicated at 56. The surfaces of thesubstantially conical end portions 54 and 55 are adapted to respectivelyseat in the openings 45 and 46 when the sleeve 49 is to be connected tothe arms 43 and 44.

When the sleeve 49 is to be connected to the arms 43 and 44, the bushing59 is extended through the bore of the sleeve 49. The stem of the bolt52 is then passed through the sleeve 5| to extend beyond thesubstantially conical end portion 54 of the bushing 59 which is adapted1- to seat in the opening 45 in the arm 43, the substantially conicalend portion 55 at this time being oriented to cooperate with the conicalopening 45 in the arm 44. A washer 59 is interposed between the head ofthe bolt 52 and the substantially conical end portion 55 and anotherwasher is disposed at the outer end of the substantially conical endportion 54. A self-locking nut 6| is passed onto the threaded free endportion of the stem vof the bolt 52 outwardly of the washer 60.Thereafter the nut Gl is run inwardly on the threaded portion'of thebolt 52 and in so doing the rubber bushing G is compressed so as toassume the position thereof illustrated in Fig. 7. In so doing the endportions 54 and 55 are respectively firmly seated in the openings i5 and48 and the enlarged end portions as 58 are forced into tight engagementwith the stem portion of the bolt 52 whereby the sleeve 49 is tightlyconnected to` the arms 43 and t4, this tight connection being assured byreason of the compression of the rubber bushing 5@ resulting fromtightening of the nut 6l. Moreover, the tightening of nut 6| forcesportions of the bushing 5B into the spaces between the respective endsof the sleeve 49 and the adjacent faces of the arms and 4d whereby ringsas 58 are formed on the periphery of the bushing 5U.

Resort to a rubber bushing as 50 is not only advantageous in assuring atight interconnection but also because rubber is disposed betweenmetallic surfaces that are disposed in adjacent relation one to theother. Thus if the sleeve 5i was directly engaged with the openings d'5'and l5 and also with the sleeve 49, since these parts are exposed towater and road grime when in use, there might be a tendency towardfreezing of these parts one with the other. The rubber bushing, however,so separates the various elements that this and kindred objectionableconditions are avoided.

The sleeve A8 at the other end of the torque arm di' has a rubberbushing similar to the rubber bushing 50 associated therewith and alsois adapted to have a bolt 62 corresponding to the bolt 52 associatedtherewith. The sleeve 48 is disposed between the lower portions of thearms I5 and IS of the center bracket. These depending arms have conicalopenings formed therein that correspond to the conical openings f7.5 and45. Thus when a nut is tightened on the bolt 62 the sleeve 48 is tightlyconnected between the depending arms of the center bracket.

Another torque arm 63, like the torque arm 47, is provided which hassleeves 64 and S5 provided at the respective ends thereof. The frontspring seat 4| has arms formed thereon corresponding to the arms 43 and44 and the sleeve 65 is secured between these arms in the manner shownin Fig. 'i and described hereinabove with reference to the sleeve 49.The sleeve 65 is disposed between depending arms of the front bracket ll and is connected thereto in the manner described hereinabove withreference to the sleeve fl and as shown in Fig. 7.

The adjustability aiforded by the eccentric end portions on the bushingsas 5) enables adjus'tment of the torque arms to be effected so as tobring the axles FA and RA into parallel relation one with the other andalso into normal relation with the line of travel of the vehicle withwhich my apparatus is associated. Thus by loosening the nut as 6| from aparticular one of the bolts as 52 the compression of the associatedbushing 50 is relieved and this is effected to such an extent that thebushing 50 may be rotated in the openings as 45 and d6 on which it ismounted. By reason of the eccentricity of the end portions of such abushing, such movement thereof in the openings in which these portionsare mounted has the effeet of increasing or decreasing the effectivelength of the associated torque arm and in this way, for example, thefront axle FA may be 8i? moved toward or away from the rear axle RA soas to thereby establish the desired relationship between the axles andthe line of travel of the vehicle.

As will be explained presently, the equalizer 20 rocks in the course ofoperation of my apparatus, and in view of this it is important to insurethat in the course of such rocking movement the respective end portionsof they equalizer do not move into engagement with thel lower portion ofthe frame on which my apparatus is mounted. To this end a stop seat 66is mounted between the depending arms I5 and I6 of the center bracket I6in a position immediately above that whereat the torque arm 4l isconnected to this bracket. This stop seat comes into use in an extremeinstance such as that illustratedl in Fig. 4 where the wheels carried bythe front axle FA have encountered an obstruction which has forced theaxle FA upwardly. This tends to straighten the spring 29 and causes therespective end portions of the spring to move over the arcuate surfacesafforded by the members 2S and 3l. In the course of movement of theadjacent end: portions of the spring 29 over the arcuate lower surfaceof the member 23 the equalizer 2G is pivoted from the normal positionthereof shown in Fig. 1 into the canted position shown in Fig. 4. In thecourse of movement of the equalizer 20' into the canted position, thearcuate surface on the lower wall of the member 24 is effective on theadjacent end of the spring 38 so as to force this end of the springdownwardly. Such downward' movement of this end of the spring 30 islimited by engagement of this end of the spring with a stop seat 66 asshown in Fig. 4 and the interruption of such downward movement alsointerrupts movement of the equalizer 24 so that it is prevented fromcoming into engagement with the frame of the vehicle. The cantingmovement imparted to the equalizer 20 in an instance where the frontaxle FA is raised as aforesaid has the effect of dissipating the shockincident to such raising through both the springs 29 and 3D since theequalizer 20 is effective to transfer a portion of the shock from thespring 29 to the spring 30 so that the equalizer, in effect, equalizesthe stress impressed on the respective springs. So to do expeditesdissipation of the stresses attendant to the impressed shock and causesthe vehicle on the frame F to move in a relatively horizontal plane sothat stresses incidental to such shocks are not impressed on thevehicle. The aforesaid canting of the equalizer as 2D also results ininsuring that the impressed load will be borne substantially equal bythe respective axles FA and RA. Thus when the axle as FA is forcedupwardly as aforesaid the normal effect would be for this axle to pickup the entire impressed load. However, by reason of the canting movementof the equalizer 2O and the transfer of the attendant stresses to thespring 30, the impressed load tends to remain equally impressed upon therespective axles.

In Fig. 5 I have illustrated the positions assumed by various elementsof my apparatus in an instance where the rear axle RA is forcedupwardly, and in this instance the equalizer as 2l! is effective todistribute the attendant stress between the springs 3G and 29, and thisalso has the effect of substantially equally distributing the impressedload between the axles RA and FA.

Normally leaf springs embody a convex configuration and the length ofthe leaves progressively decreases in the direction of the convexconfiguration thereof. Thus in normal spring construction the inwardleaf in the convex configuration of the spring 29 would be somewhatlonger than the immediately adjacent leaf and this leaf, in turn, wouldbe somewhat longer than the leaf immediately adjacent thereto andoutwardly thereof. By referring to the drawings it will be noted thatmost of the leaves of the springs 29 and 30 are arranged in thisconventional manner. However, by reason of the fact that the endportions of the springs 29 and 3G may be moved into engagement with thestop seat 66, it is advantageous to alter the conventional arrangementof the springs. Thus it has been found that in those instances where thelength of the leaves of the springs progressively decreases and the endportion of such a spring moves into engagement with the stop 66 it ispossible for the end of a leaf of a spring to be impaled on the end ofthe stop 66 whereby the spring is prevented from returning to its normalposition. In order to avoid this, I arrange all leaves of the springthat are likely to come into engagement with the stop seat 66 to be ofat least substantially equal length. Moreover, I impart an arcuateconfiguration to the face of the stop to be engaged by the springs whichalso contributes to preventing a leaf of the spring from being impaledon the stop. In further pursuance J in the end thereof which at itsouter end merges L with the congruent faces of the other two leaves. Inthe present instance it is only necessary to arrange three leaves of thespring in this manner because the dimensions of the various elements aresuch that these are the only leaves of the springs that might come intocontact with the stop seat 66. It will be appreciated that in otherarrangements additional leaves might be of such length as to be likelyto impale on a stop seat as 66 and in such instances the end portions ofsuch leaves will be extended in the manner described hereinabove. l

The extension of certain leaves of the springs in the manner justdescribed is not only advantageous in that it prevents such springs fromimpaling on the stop seat but this arrangement embodies the furtheradvantage of imparting resiliency to the end portions of the springsthat is greater than the resiliency of the spring as a whole. As aresult of this a quite flexible support is afforded especially in thoseinstances where but a light load is impressed upon the springs, acondition which is found to be quite advantageous.

It will be manifest from the foregoing description that I have provideda spring suspension that enables the hereinafter and above set forth andkindred objects of this invention to be realized, and while I haveillustrated and described the preferred embodiments of my invention, itis to be understood that these are capable of variation andmodification, and I therefore do not wish to be limited to the precisedetails set forth, but desire to avail myself of such changes and 10alterations as fall within the purview of the following claims.

I claim: y

l. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes two leafsprings arranged in spaced apart and aligned relation, an axlesuspension mounted at the medial part of each spring, a first bracket, arockable member mounted on the first bracket and disposed to be engagedby the adjacent ends of said springs, a second bracket en* gaged by theremote end of one spring, a third bracket engaged by the remote end ofthe other spring, a torque arm extended between one of the axlesuspensions and the rst bracket, and means for adjustably connectingsaid torque arm to said one axle suspension and the first bracket, thelast-named means comprising an expandable eccentric bushing mounted forrotation in at least a selected one of the said first bracket and thesaid one axle suspension, a bearing sleeve at the end of said torque armcorresponding to said eccentric bushing, said bushing being expandablyfitted into said bearing sleeve, and means to hold the bushing in anexpanded relation against the bearing sleeve.

2. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes two leafsprings arranged in spaced apart and aligned relation, an axlesuspension mounted at the medial part of each spring, a first bracket, arockable member mounted on the first bracket and disposed to be engagedby the adjacent ends of said springs, a second bracket engaged by theremote end of one spring, a third bracket engaged by the remote end ofthe other spring, each of said springs being of convex configuration andhaving parallel leaves therein of which a majority are of successivelyincreasing length inwardly of the convex configuration of the spring,the end portions of said springs that are respectively engageable withsaid rockable member and said brackets being afforded by the inwardmostof the leaves of the spring, at least the two inwardmost leaves being ofsubstantially equal length and the leaf adjacent to such leaves havingat least selected of the end portions of beveled configurations inportions thereof aligned with said portions of equal length whereby eachsuch end portion embodies greater resiliency than that of the spring asa whole.

3. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes two leafsprings arranged in spaced apart and aligned relation, an axlesuspension mounted at the medial part of each spring, a first bracket, arockable member mounted on the rst bracket and disposed to be engaged bythe adjacent ends of said springs, a second bracket engaged by theremote end of one spring, a third bracket engaged by the remote end ofthe other spring, a stop seat on said Vfirst bracket below said rockablemember in position to be engaged by one or the other of the adjacent endportions of the springs upon rocking of said rockable member in onedirection or the other into one or the other of the extreme positionsthereof to thereupon limit further movement of said member in suchdirection, the end portions of the leaves of the springs so engageablewith said stop seat being of substantially equal length so as to therebyprevent the end portions of such leaves from impaling on said stop seat,and the outwardmost of the leaves of said spring engageable with saidstop seat having a free end portion of beveled configuration to insuresmooth sliding movement thereof over said stop seat.

4. In a spring suspension of the kind described li that includes twoleaf springs arranged in spaced apart and aligned relation, an axlesuspension mounted at the medial part of each spring, a rst bracket, arockable member mounted on the first bracket and disposed to be engagedby the adjacent ends of said springs, a second bracket engaged by theremote end of one spring, a third bracket engaged by the remote end ofthe other spring, a torque arm extended between one of the axlesuspensions and the first bracket, means for adjustably connecting saidtorque arm to said one axle suspension and the rst bracket, anothertorque arm extended between the other of said axle suspensions and thesecond bracket, and means for adjustably conj;

necting said other torque arm to said other axle suspension and thesecond bracket, each of said means for thus adjustably connecting eachtorque arm including a resilient eccentric bushing at a selected one ofthe bracket and axle suspensions e corresponding to the torque arm, saidbushing having enlarged ends, a bearing sleeve at the end of the torquearm corresponding to said bushing, with the enlarged ends of the bushingprojecting beyond the opposite ends or" the bearing sleeve, and meansfor compressing said enlarged ends of the bushing against said oppositeends of the bearing sleeve.

5. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes two leafsprings arranged in spaced 3,

apart and aligned relation, an axle suspension mounted at the medialpart of each spring, a rst bracket, a rockable member mounted on thefirst bracket and disposed to be engaged by the adjacent ends of saidsprings, a second bracket engaged by the remote end of one spring, athird bracket engaged by the remote end of the other spring, a torquearm extended between one of the axle suspensions and the first bracket,another torque arm extended between the other of said axle suspensionsand the second bracket, means for adjustably connecting at leastselected of the ends of the torque arms respectively to mounting meanson the axle suspensions and on the iirst and second brackets whichinclude a bearing sleeve at such a selected end of a torque arm, aresilient eccentric bushing disposed for rotation relative to the torquearm between and relative to the adjacent mounting means and such bearingsleeve, said bushing having tapered ends projecting outwardly fromeither opposite end of said bearing sleeve, and means for holding saidtapered ends of the bushing under compression to compress the bushingagainst said bearing sleeve and thereby secure each such mounting means,bushing and bearing sleeve in selected adjusted relation with eachother.

6. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes two leafsprings arranged in spaced apart and aligned relation, an axlesuspension mounted at the medial part of each spring, a first bracket, arockable member mounted on the first bracket and disposed to be engagedby the adjacent ends of said springs, a second bracket engaged by theremote end of one spring, a third bracket engaged by the remote end ofthe other spring, a torque arm extended between one of the axlesuspensions and the rst bracket, another torque arm extended between theother of said axle suspensions and the second bracket, and means foradjustably connecting at least selected of the ends of the torque armsrespectively between spaced-apart arms on the axle suspensions and onthe first and second brackets ff f) which include a bearing sleeve atsuch a selected end of a torque arm, an eccentric bushing of resilientmaterial interposed between said spaced-apart arms and tted into saidbearing sleeve and effective to separate such spacedapart arm andbearing sleeve from each other. and means for securing each such bushingand bearing sleeve in selected adjusted relation with each other withsaid bushing under compression in and between the spaced-apart arms andthe bearing sleeve, the last named means including tapered openings insaid spaced-apart arms in which said bushings are mounted, enlargedtapered ends on said bushings with sections o1 said tapered ends beingof a diameter larger than said openings and being extended through saidopenings, and means for drawing said tapered ends toward one another tocompress said bushing in said tapered openings and against the outerside walls of said spaced apart arms.

7. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes a leafspring having an axle suspension mounted medially thereof and means ateither end of the spring for supporting the spring in a suspendedrelation, a one-piece torque arm having at either end a connection torespective mounting means carried by one of said supporting means andsaid axle suspension respectively, at least one of said mounting meansincluding a resilient eccentric bushing having at least one enlarged endand being rotatably supported relative to said torque arm, the end ofsaid torque arm corresponding to said bushing having a bearing sleevemounted on said bushing with the enlarged end of the latter projectingfrom the corresponding end of the bearing sleeve, said bearing sleevebeing of less inside diameter than the diameter of said enlarged end,and means for bearing against said enlarged end of the bushing tocompress the bushing against said bearing sleeve and thereby hold thetorque arm in an adjusted relation made possible through predeterminedrotation of said bushing.

8. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes a leafspring having an axle suspension mounted medially thereof and means ateither end of the spring for supporting the spring in a suspendedrelation, a one-piece torque arm having at either end a connection torespective mounting means carried by one of said supporting means andsaid axle suspension respectively, at least one of said mounting meansincluding a pair of relatively short spaced apart arms, a resilienteccentric bushing rotatably carried'by said arms and having at least oneenlarged end, the end of said torque arm corresponding to said bushinghaving a bearing sleeve mounted on said bushing with the enlarged end ofthe latter projecting from the corresponding end of the bearing sleeve,said bearing sleeve being of less inside diameter than the diameter ofsaid enlarged end, and means for bearing against said enlarged end ofthe bushing to compress the bushing against said bearing sleeve andthereby hold the torque arm in an adjusted relation made possiblethrough predetermined rotation of said bushing.

9. In a spring suspension of the kind described that includes a leafspring having an axle suspension mounted medially thereof and means ateither end of the spring for supporting the spring in a suspendedrelation, a one-piece torque arm having at either end a connection torespective mounting means carried by one of said supporting means andsaid axle suspension respectively,

at least one of said mounting means including a pair of relatively shortspaced apart arms, a resilient eccentric bushing rotatably carried bysaid arms and having enlarged ends disposed out- Wardly oi said arms soas to be compressible against the outer sides of said arms, the end ofsaid torque arm corresponding to said bushing having a bearing sleevemounted on the bushing between said arms, and means holding saidenlarged ends under compression against said outer sides of said arms tocompress said bushing against said bearing sleeve and thereby hold saidtorque arm in an adjusted position.

10. In a spr-ing suspension of the kind described that includes a leafspring having an axle suspension mounted medially thereon and meansadjacent either end of the spring for supporting the same in a suspendedrelation, a one-piece torque arm having at either end a connection torespective mounting means carried by one of said supporting means andsaid axle suspension respectively, at least one of said mounting meansinclud-ing a pair of relatively short spaced apart bearing arms havingtapered bearing openings therein, a bearing sleeve at the end of thetorque arm correspond-ing to said bearing arms, and a resilientexpandable eccentric bushing expandably tted into said bearing sleeveand the openings in said spaced apart arms so that the bushing may berotated against and relative to the bearing faces of the spaced apartarms and the bearing sleeve to thereby adjust the effective length ofsaid torque arm, the end of the bushing corresponding to each of saidbearing openings in said bearing arms being enlarged and extendedthrough such bearing opening to the outer side thereof, and means tocompress and hold compressed said projecting and enlarged end of thebushing Within the corresponding bearing opening and the bearing sleeveto thereby lock up the adjusted length of the torque arm.

JAMES C. WARD.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,812,876 Huirerd July 7, 1936 2,338,478 Wulf Jan. 4, 19442,502,744 Parker Apr. 4, 1950 2,577,322 Frazier Dec. 4, 1951

